It is common practice for spare tires and wheels of pickup trucks to be mounted centrally beneath the rear portion of the load bed of the pickup truck with the spare tire in a horizontally disposed position. While some pickup trucks are available with exterior horizontally outwardly opening spare tire and wheel receiving compartments, these are available only on pickup trucks having long wheel basis and constitute an extra cost option.
The more conventional manner of mounting a spare tire and wheel assembly in horizontal position beneath a rear portion of the load bed of a pickup truck includes several disadvantages. A spare tire mounted in this manner usually cannot be removed without the person removing the spare tire and wheel having to place one or more portions of his body on the ground. Further, an underslung mounted spare tire of this type is exposed to mud, snow and ice splash from the ground and a build-up of ice or mud on the release mechanism for such an underslung mounted spare tire and wheel can sometimes render the release mechanism difficult to operate. Still further, underslung mounted spare tires and wheels are difficult to lock in position independent of the provision of a length of chain and a padlock.
The aforementioned difficulties which are sometimes encountered with underslung mounted pickup truck spare tires and wheels are well known and thus various structures have been heretofore designed to provide a means whereby a spare tire and wheel may be securely mounted from an upstanding wall portion of the load bed of a pickup truck. Some forms of pickup truck load bed side wall mounted spare tire support structures are designed to support the associated spare wheel and tire on the exterior of the load bed and other forms are designed to support the associated spare tire and wheel on the interior of the associated load bed side wall. Examples of these two types of spare tire and wheel mounting structures are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,701,670, 2,772,826, 3,204,840 and 3,613,972. However, these previously known and patented forms of spare tire and wheel mounting structures have several disadvantages including the necessity to modify the pickup truck load bed structure in order to accept or mount the spare tire and wheel mounting structure thereon and not being sufficiently stable in order to securely fasten a relatively heavy pickup truck spare tire and wheel assembly in stored position.